Grant Hill (basketball)
Grant Henry Hill (born October 5, 1972) is an American NBA basketball player who currently plays for the Orlando Magic. He is 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in). Hill was one of the best all-around players of his generation, often leading his team in points, rebounds and assists. He arguably had potential to become one of the best small forwards of all-time, but his stint in the league has been hampered by career-threatening injuries. Early life and college Hill was born in Dallas, Texas while his father Calvin, a Yale graduate, was starring as a running back for the Dallas Cowboys, winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award in 1969. His mother Janet was a Wellesley graduate who shared a suite with Hillary Clinton when both were freshmen there . After his father's NFL career ended, the family settled in Reston, Virginia, where Grant became a high-school superstar at South Lakes High School. Hill played four years at Duke University, winning national titles in 1991 and 1992 and losing in the championship game in 1994. Hill might be best known for his role in a desperation play in an NCAA tournament regional final against Kentucky in 1992, a game many consider to be the greatest college basketball game of all time. With Duke down 103-102 in overtime with 2.1 seconds remaining after Kentucky's Sean Woods hit a floater, an unguarded Hill heaved the in-bounds pass 75 feet across the court into Christian Laettner's hands, who dribbled once before pulling up to make the game-winning jumper as time expired. NBA career Grant Hill was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the third pick in the NBA Draft after graduating from Duke in 1994. In his first season, Hill averaged 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.77 steals per game, sharing NBA Rookie the Year honors with Jason Kidd. He was named to the all-NBA first team in 1997 and also regularly played in the NBA All-Star Game, where he made history by being the first rookie ever to lead an NBA All-Star fan balloting (1994-95), narrowly defeating Shaquille O'Neal. In his second season (1995-96), he once again led the fan balloting, this time edging Michael Jordan (his first All-Star game after returning from retirement). He also won a gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta as a member of the U.S. Men's Basketball Team. However, despite Hill's accomplishments in Detroit, the Pistons never made it far in the playoffs, consistently losing in the first round. In 2000, he forced the Pistons to send him to the Orlando Magic in what appeared to be a one-sided sign-and-trade deal for Chucky Atkins and Ben Wallace. The Magic hoped he would team up with fellow superstar Tracy McGrady, who had recently been signed away from the Toronto Raptors, to return Orlando among the NBA elite. But Hill has been hampered by ankle injuries ever since his arrival in Orlando, playing in only four games in his first season with the Magic, 14 games in his second and 29 in his third. He was forced to sit out his entire fourth year with Orlando (2003-04); meanwhile, the Pistons, who had defeated the Magic in the 2003 Playoffs, won the championship. Furthermore, Wallace eclipsed Hill as an NBA star, winning Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2002, 2003, 2005, and 2006. In March 2003, Hill underwent a major surgical procedure in which doctors re-fractured his ankle and realigned it with his leg bone. Five days after the surgery was performed, the unexpected happened: Hill developed a 40.5 °C (104.5-degree) fever and convulsions. He was immediately rushed to a hospital. Doctors removed the splint around his ankle and discovered that Hill had developed a staph infection, from which he nearly died. He was hospitalized for a week and had to take intravenous antibiotics for six months. But the 2004-05 season saw a return to the old Grant Hill who was so popular earlier in his career. Hill, though hampered by a bruised shin that caused him to miss several games, started and played 67 games for the Magic, averaging 19.7 points per game. Fans voted him an All-Star starter again, and he led the Eastern Conference All-Star Team to a victory over the West. In addition, at the conclusion of the season, Hill was awarded the Joe Dumars Trophy presented to the NBA Sportsmanship Award Winner. During the 2005-06 season, Hill unfortunately reverted to the oft-injured self as nagging groin injuries kept him sidelined for much of the first half of the season. Art collection Hill owns a substantial collection of African-American art, centering around the work of Romare Bearden and Elizabeth Catlett. A selection of 46 works from the collection were featured in a touring exhibition at a number of American museums from 2003 to 2006. The exhibition was last shown at the Nasher Museum of Art at Hill's alma mater, Duke. Trivia *Hill was ranked #74 on SLAM Magazine's "Top 75 NBA Players of All Time" in 2003. *Grant is married to R&B singer Tamia. The two have a daughter named Myla Grace. *Before Hill's serious ankle injuries, he was among the league leaders in triple-doubles during his tenure with the Detroit Pistons. *Was a spokesperson for the soft drink Sprite. External links *NBA Player Profile for Grant Hill *Official Grant Hill Site *Official site of the Grant Hill Collection of African American Art *Grant Hill – Player profile, statistics, biography, wallpapers *NBA Fantasy Basketball Stats - Grant Hill